‘I Think Dalglish Should go for a Natural Right Winger’

Football Pundit Cites Liverpool System as Reasons for Carroll Malaise

Liverpool's Carroll recovered well from a tough defeat to Manchester United.REUTERS

In order to get the best out of Liverpool striker Andy Carroll, Kenny Dalglish must enter next month's transfer window according to Robbie Savage.

Liverpool's record signing has cut an increasingly peripheral figure at Anfield this season, defying his obvious talent and perhaps contradicting his hugely lofty price tag.

Although Carroll has endured an inevitably frustrating time at Liverpool, Carroll believes Luis Suarez's pending suspension for his well-documented racial abuse of Patrice Evra, could be the making of the towering England international.

Some critics have suggested Liverpool may have to go out and buy another forward in January in order to compensate for Suarez's predicted Anfield hiatus. While Dalglish's side have been a model of consistency and fortitude at the back, they have on occasions toiled up front, and Savage believes Carroll has the ability to add to Liverpool's paltry 20 league goals.

"Should Liverpool buy a striker in the transfer window now they look likely to be without Luis Suarez for a couple of months? Not for me, and I think Kenny Dalglish should go for a natural right winger instead." Savage told the Daily Mirror.

"Let me explain why. If Suarez serves his ban, it must be time for Andy Carroll to get an extended run of starts. But the way Dalglish's (Liverpool) side currently set up in their 4-3-3 doesn't suit him."

Having citing Liverpool's current system as one of the major factors behind Carroll's failure to make a sustained impact at Anfield, Savage believes Dalglish must adapt his formation to suit the club's record signing.

"If they (Liverpool) are going to get the best out of Carroll and if he is to prove he is worth anything approaching £35m, he's going to have to play in a 4-4-2 where he can receive crosses from wide areas, to hold the ball up and to show off his heading ability in front of goal." Savage claimed when assessing Liverpool's style.

"Stewart Downing can do that from the left but Liverpool currently have no-one who can do it from the right and I wouldn't be surprised if they fixed that in January."